After the great victory at Guandu, Yuan Shao's army almost ran across the Central Plains and was invincible except for encountering a wall at Yan Liang.
Most of the three states of Si, Yan, and Yu in the Central Plains were occupied by Yuan Shao. Even Xuzhou, which Liu Bei captured, nominally belonged to Yuan Shao.
Sitting on the land of eight states, Yuan Shao is truly the strongest in the world. Even if all the remaining princes combined, their strength is not as strong as Yuan Shao.
More than a month ago, Yuan Shao, who fell ill, left his eldest son to guard Xu Du and returned to Yecheng.
After a month of deliberation and momentum building, Yuan Shao officially proclaimed himself King of Wei, made Yecheng his capital, appointed hundreds of officials, and granted great rewards.
Of course, before Yuan Shao became the king, he also made a statement to the Han Emperor in Chang'an, saying that the reason why he became the king was to better lead the cause of anti-Cao Cao, and to respond to the support of the ministers, he could not succeed in becoming the king.
.
When the news came to Xinye, it naturally caused quite a shock.
Since Wang Mang, this is the first time in the Eastern Han Dynasty that a person with a different surname calls himself king. What this means is very clear.
"My lord is very accurate about Yuan Shao's thoughts. Not even a few months after my lord's announcement, Yuan Shao really became the king."
Under the lobby, Xu You sighed.
Since Yan Liang was granted the title of General Right, he had a legitimate official position, and his subordinates also called him their lord.
Yan Liang smiled disdainfully, "Yuan Shao's ambition was already obvious when he challenged Dong and wanted to establish a new emperor. There is no need to guess."
At that time, Dong Zhuo deposed the young emperor Liu Bian and made Liu Xie the emperor. Although the princes of Guandong turned against Dong, they had to recognize the new emperor established by Dong Zhuo.
Only Yuan Shao wanted to establish a new emperor and fight against Dong Zhuo. However, he was opposed by Cao Cao and others, so he failed.
Yuan Shao's ambition has been revealed since then. Yan Liang is familiar with the Three Kingdoms. How could he not know it?
"When Yuan Shao becomes king, the next step is probably to establish himself as emperor. Now he is sitting on the land of eight states. If another new dynasty is established, the remaining prestige of the Han court will be gone, and people all over the world will flock to the new dynasty.
At that time, I'm afraid it wouldn't be a good thing for us."
Yiji was a little worried.
"That's not necessarily true. In my old opinion, Yuan Shao becoming king would be a good thing for my lord."
Jia Xu, who has been silent for a long time, either doesn't speak, but when he does speak, his words are astonishing.
Yan Liang was also a little surprised by Jia Xu's words, but as soon as his thoughts changed, he quickly understood the implication of Jia Xu's words. A smile could not help but appear on the corner of his mouth, but he did not say it clearly.
Yi Ji, however, looked puzzled: "How can Wen He say this?"
Jia Xu stroked his white beard and said calmly: "Everyone in the world knows Yuan Shao's dream of being emperor, but with Yuan Shao's knowledge, even if he wants to be emperor, he should do it step by step. First be crowned Duke, then King.
, and then proclaim himself the emperor. But now he is so impatient to conquer the Central Plains, and he becomes the king in one fell swoop before the people's hearts are settled. Doesn't Uncle Ji think there must be a mystery to this?"
"Mystery..." Yi Ji looked blank, still confused.
At this time, Xu You's eyes lit up and he said excitedly: "Could it be that Wen He wanted to say that Yuan Shao was trapped by a serious illness and knew that his days were numbered, so he was anxious to proclaim himself king and emperor in order to complete the task before his death?"
His dream of being an emperor?”
Jia Xu smiled and said nothing, which seemed to be his acquiescence in what Xu You said.
It was then that Yi Ji and the others present suddenly realized, and their worried expressions suddenly became cheerful.
Yan Liang's expression was indifferent and he did not show any surprise. In fact, he had already guessed the reason when Jia Xu opened his mouth.
Historically, it took Cao Cao how many years to transform from Duke of Wei to King of Wei, paving the way for his son Cao Pi to succeed the Han Dynasty.
Even like Liu Bei, although he surpassed the rank of king and directly called himself the king of Hanzhong, he only became king after he captured the two rivers and won the hearts of the people.
Not to mention Sun Quan, who dared to proclaim himself emperor only after Cao and Liu were dead for many years.
At present, Yuan Shao has only conquered the Central Plains states for half a year and hastily proclaimed himself king. Even if he is arrogant and arrogant, he will not be so disorganized.
For all these reasons, the only explanation is that Yuan Shao knew that his end was approaching and wanted to indulge in the addiction of becoming an emperor before he died.
"Yuan Shao is too busy dreaming about being an emperor that he has no intention of paying attention to us. This is a God-given opportunity. It is the time for the general to use his troops."
Yan Liang, who had been sitting in the audience talking among counselors, finally made a sonorous and powerful sound, and there was a faint hint of murderous intention in his bold words.
Everyone's expressions froze slightly, and their eyes all turned to Yan Liang.
Yan Liang looked around at everyone and said loudly: "I have decided to capture Jingxiang while Yuan Shao has no time to look south. After Yuan Shao's death and the Yuan family is divided, he will send his troops north to seize the Central Plains."
Hunter's killing intent surged through Yan Liang's body, and the silent blood began to boil in everyone's hearts again.
From early spring to autumn, after nearly six months of rest and recuperation, the soldiers have been recuperating for a long time, the horses are fat and strong, and the grain harvest in the fields is about to be abundant. There is no worry about Cao Cao and Yuan Shao outside, and the hearts of the people inside are united.
God-given opportunity, the right time to use troops is now.
In the lobby, the crowd immediately became excited.
Amidst the excitement, there was still one person who remained calm, and that person was still Jia Xu.
"It is indeed the best time to capture Jingxiang at this time, but Liu Biao has 40,000 troops stationed in Xiangyang and more than 500 naval warships, so his strength cannot be underestimated. However, our navy has not been established for a long time, and the warships are no more than
There are more than two hundred ships. If we cannot obtain the water control rights of the Han River, it will be difficult to cross the Han River and capture Xiangyang."
With Jia Xu's reminder, everyone immediately calmed down and their high emotions subsided slightly.
Yan Liang said calmly: "Nothing is difficult in the world, as long as there are people who are willing, it doesn't matter if there are difficulties, just overcome them. Do you think Liu Biao will give Xiangyang to us for free?"
Yan Liang spoke boldly and his face was filled with strong confidence, which only made everyone around him feel infected, and everyone's confidence was re-established.
At this time, Yan Liang changed the topic again, "However, Wen He's concerns are not unreasonable. To capture Xiangyang this time, we must combine cunning tactics with serious soldiers to overcome the victory. Since Wen He has anticipated the difficulties, he must have
There should be countermeasures.”
Yan Liang kicked the ball to Jia Xu again.
"Well, I don't have any clever tricks, but I do have a strategy. In fact, my lord has also used this strategy before." Jia Xu said with a smile.
Used?
Yan Liang was in a daze for a moment, then realized it immediately, "Sir, it must be the Sun family from Jiangdong. Well, this external force cannot be ignored. If we can persuade the Sun family to raise troops to attack Jiangxia and force Liu Biao to dispatch some of the Xiangyang garrison south, it will naturally be beneficial to us.
."
Yan Liang said, his eyes turned to Yi Ji.
The most talented diplomat under Yan Liang's command immediately understood what he meant, and immediately stood up and said: "I would like to send Jiang Sun as an envoy to persuade Sun Quan to send troops."
Yan Liang was very satisfied with Yi Ji's initiative to apply.
At that moment, he wrote a letter stating his interests, and agreed with Sun Quan to attack Jingzhou from the north and the south, and divide Jingzhou equally after Liu Biao was destroyed.
Jia Xu proposed a plan to connect with Jiangdong, and Yi Ji asked Ying to go as an envoy to Jiangdong. The two counselors showed their prowess in front of Yan Liang.
At this time, Xu You beside him couldn't sit still, his eyes rolled a few times, and suddenly there was a hint of mystery in the corner of his mouth.
"My lord, I think that just helping Jiangdong is not enough. We'd better take a coordinated approach so that Liu Biao can be indifferent to us and deal with the Sun family boldly."
Looking at the evil smile on Xu You's face, Yan Liang knew that he had another bad idea.
"I wonder if you have any clever ideas, sir?"
Xu You moved closer and explained his plan.
After hearing this, Yan Liang nodded slightly. A sly smile flashed across Yingwu's face, "This strategy seems a bit heretical, but I like this heretical strategy."
The two masters and ministers looked at each other, with sneers flashing on their faces.
######
Xiangyang, Prefecture Mufu.
In the courtyard of the deep house, it is misty and rainy.
Cai Yu stood leaning on the railing, looking at the yellow leaves all over the courtyard in trance.
Looking back, Cai Yu couldn't help but sigh quietly. On the couch behind him, the elderly Liu Biao was still sleeping soundly.
Since being frightened by Zhang Yun's ear-cutting, Liu Biao's health has been deteriorating. Although he is not in danger of death, his spirit has become more and more depressed. In addition to handling official business, after returning to the inner courtyard, he spends most of his time in coma.
A deep sleep.
Cai Yu, who was bored, was combing his hair casually, and accidentally caught a glimpse of a white hair among his waterfall-like black hair.
A look of surprise flashed across the young woman's beautiful face, and she quickly pulled out the white hair.
Staring at the white hair, Cai Yu's eyes flashed with melancholy, and she sighed quietly: "I have gray hair when I am not even thirty yet. How could I age so fast?"
While talking to herself, Cai Yu looked back at her husband who was sleeping on the couch, with a hint of resentment quietly passing through her eyes.
Cai Yu once heard those old women say that if a woman is not nourished by a man, she is like a flower that cannot be watered by nectar and will easily wither.
As young as she is, she is like a blooming flower. Unfortunately, her husband is getting older and has no energy to soothe her young heart.
"Alas~~"
There was another sigh, full of helplessness.
Just when she was feeling sad, the maid who was close to her came quietly into the pavilion and whispered: "Madam, there is a woman outside the house who claims to have been ordered by Yan Liang to come here to see Madam."
Hearing the word "Yan Liang", Cai Yu's heart suddenly shook.
It was not surprising that Yan Liang sent someone here, but what surprised Cai Yu was that the person who came was not asking to see Liu Biao, but to see himself.
Her beautiful eyebrows slightly condensed and she pondered for a moment, then Cai Yu stood up and walked away lightly.
In the side hall, Cai Yu saw the woman, and she recognized at a glance that this young woman was her niece's personal maid.
Cai Yu's sister is Huang Chengyan's wife, and Huang Yueying is naturally her niece.
When the maid saw Cai Yu's arrival, she hurriedly stood up and saluted.
Cai Yu waved her hand to signal her to excuse herself and asked, "Why are you here in Xiangyang when you are not serving Yueying in Xinye?"
"This slave, by order of my master, is here to deliver a letter to Madam, as well as some small filial gifts."
With that said, the maid took out a piece of paper from her sleeve and presented it with both hands.
"Why did this Yan Liang suddenly write to me? What did he have in mind?"
Cai Yu was filled with doubts. After a moment of hesitation, she accepted the letter. (To be continued. Piaotian. Registered members of literature recommend this work.